Davie: Bowl Computer Skips `Intangibles'

November 15, 1998|By Malcolm Moran, Tribune Staff Writer.

LANDOVER, Md. — After his team's seventh consecutive victory, and the fourth in a row over a team with a losing record, Notre Dame coach Bob Davie offered a mild defense of his team's schedule, an issue he has avoided as the Irish have continued to win.

"I know there's a lot of conversation about strength of schedule, and how you go about won-loss records of opponents. . . . It's hard to factor in a bunch of those intangibles in the computer," Davie said.

"Coming in there, playing Navy in front of a sold-out stadium . . . it looked to me like the whole Navy was here. It's a good thing the Persian Gulf situation got quieted down, because we might have been behind in the race over there."

Notre Dame's hope of reaching a game in the Bowl Championship Series was helped by the come-from-behind victories of Tennessee and Kansas State. If UCLA, currently No. 2 in the BCS rankings, finishes third or lower, there would be two open spots available in the Sugar and Orange Bowls. If UCLA reaches the Fiesta Bowl as a No. 1 or No. 2 team, Rose Bowl officials have said they would not replace the Bruins with Notre Dame, meaning that just one open spot would remain.

If the Irish are selected for a BCS game, their destination could be determined when the BCS completes the definition of its selection process.

The distinction could decide whether the Irish would go to the Sugar or Orange Bowls. After No. 1 and No. 2 teams are assigned to the Fiesta Bowl and the host teams are matched with other games (Big Ten and Pac-10 in the Rose Bowl, Big East or Atlantic Coast champion in the Orange and Southeastern champion in the Sugar) the process is not clear.

Any BCS game with unfilled slots at that point would submit a list of three selections in order of preference. If two bowls make the same choices, the game making the larger payment receives priority.

But because the Sugar and Orange Bowls will be making the same payout (not yet announced but more than $11 million) a coin flip may be necessary to determine which would choose first. A decision is expected early this week.